I just want to say thank you for an Advance Audio copy of this book. I read Promise Boys by this author and I really like it. This book was very interesting and I do like the storyline. I like the narrators however, I feel like I wanted alittle more background on the characters. Overall I like the book and the author writing fits my reading interests. 3.5 but I can round up to a 4 star read.

“No justice, no peace.”
“Respect Black lives like you respect Black culture.”
“Silence is violence.”
“Racism is a disease, revolution is the cure.”

Nick Brooks’ Up in Smoke is a powerful and timely novel that blends mystery, social justice, and coming-of-age with unflinching honesty. Set in the heart of Washington, D.C., the story follows Cooper, a Black teen caught in the chaos after a peaceful protest turns into a night of looting and violence. When gunshots ring out and an undercover agent is killed, the fallout is swift—and Coop’s best friend ends up in handcuffs.

Determined to clear his friend’s name, Coop is thrust into a dangerous search for the truth. What unfolds is more than just a murder mystery—it's a confrontation with the systemic racism that shapes every part of his world.

Brooks captures the urgency of protest and the complexity of being young, Black, and unheard in America. Through Coop’s voice, we see a city simmering with anger, resilience, and the refusal to stay silent. This novel doesn’t pull punches—it forces readers to reckon with injustice, bias, and what it really means to fight for what’s right.

Up in Smoke is a gripping, emotional, and thoug

Find the real killer or be blamed.
Up in Smoke is a well written YA mystery/thriller. I was waiting for the next turn the entire time! The narrative throughout the story in relation to black youth was really amazing. I really enjoyed the dual POVs and narrators.

Big thanks to NetGalley, The publisher and Nick Brooks for the opportunity to read an ARC of "Up in Smoke".

Cooper "Coop" King hasn't had a great couple of years. The beginning of this book finds him joining in on a looting expedition in response to the shooting of a young black man as well as a few other things. When someone is killed during this mayhem and one of his friends is arrested as the shooter, Coop knows he has to try to exonerate his friend. He works with his friend's sister, Mo-the person who had attempted to gather a peaceful protest prior to the looting. Along the way the two uncover some twisted revenge plots that culminated in the death during the looting. Overall, this was a good book, though it did not live up to my expectations after Promise Boys. The writing was there. The storyline was enticing. The twists were great. The characters fell flat, though. I liked Mo alright, but I really couldn't get behind Coop. And then there was the romance. It was not poorly done, but it felt like a distraction rather than a natural growth in the two main character's relationship. This book may have been a miss for me, but I am still excited to see what Brooks gives us in the future.

I went into this book completely blind and i enjoyed the premise and storyline of this book. This is considered a YA thriller but I would say it was more of a YA mystery than a thriller. It has a big message that it wants to deliver about political and racial injustices and I do feel the book portrayed that message well. The narrators did a great job with this story as well. There was also a romance plot line as well between the characters and that was a fun and lighthearted way to entice the readers. I did give this book 3.5 stars rounding it out to 4. The story was interesting and unique storyline to anything I’ve read in the past but it was a little slow for me and for a YA thriller I expected a little more. Overall a good read and I do believe that it will be more enjoyable for its targeted audience.

Thank you NetGalley and Macmillan audio for the advance listeners copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

This quick read gets you hooked right away. There’s a rally/protest for an unjust racial shooting. Mid rally, shots are fired and someone else dies. One of the main characters and his buddies are in the wrong place at the wrong time, and are caught up in the chaos. What follows is a predictable plotline of racial profiling by the police and how can innocence be proven in such circumstances. Told in two viewpoints, one male and one female, the teens try to override the police in order to get to the bottom of who the real shooter was. Even though this isn’t a new plotline, it is still recommended for reluctant high school readers. 3.5 stars rounded up for reluctant readers

excellent casting for narrators! I had serious issues with the canon of this story but I do think the narrators were perfect for each character.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to listen to this audiobook..


Decent YA mister/crime/thriller. Kids doing a job the police should be doing.... I can see more - making a series.

Unmask a murderer or take the fall.

After Cooper King is pressured by big brother figure Jason to go on a looting spree during a local march, the unthinkable gunshots ring in the air and someone ends up dead. After Cooper flees, the news shows four teens in ski masks near the scene of the murder—Cooper and his friends. Cooper fears the cops will come knocking at his door, and the pressure only mounts when a suspect is taken into Jason.

Monique, Jason's sister and Cooper's longtime crush, is willing to go any length to clear her brother's name. Even if she needs to go into the belly of the beast and confront the killer herself. When she teams up with Cooper, they fall down the investigation rabbit hole and start to fall for each other. But little does Monique know that within this web of deception, Cooper is shrouding the truth that he was there when the shots went off. If the pair fail to uncover the real murderer, Jason will get locked up for a crime he didn't commit—and drag down Cooper with him.

Thank you to the author, publisher and Net Galley for an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
Nick Brooks does it again with another fast paced, timely mystery. I liked the dual point of views. Brooks tackles some heavy subjects in this book. For the majority of the book the pacing fit the story until the end. I think the end was rushed and could have been flushed out a little more. I will be purchasing this for our library. Our students will love it.

Up in Smoke by Nick Brooks is starts off strong and finished even stronger. The story itself is engaging focusing on important issues in society dealing with racial injustice. There are so many great discussion topics you could use to discuss if you read this with high school students. There is some violence and a little romance, but nothing super inappropriate for teenagers. Overall, this is a great book to read for someone wanting to discuss racial injustice with young adults.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a digital ARC of the book. These opinions are my own and I really loved the book because of the many themes in it.

Thank you Netgalley for the advance audiobook and reader copy of Up in Smoke by Nick Brooks in exchange for an honest review. This was a good murder mystery set during human rights protests. I enjoyed the love story that bloomed during the investigation and the corruption that can happen in any job.

I was really excited for this YA thriller, the premise was truly intriguing, but unfortunately it didn't grab me. I was really trying to get into the story and the characters, but something was missing for me. I had to stop reading it and DNF.

I went into this book blind and enjoyed the themes it tackled and societal commentary it made. The story had good pacing with high stakes which kept you interested throughout.

Thank you NetGalley for the digital copy of this book.

Cooper King finds himself in over his head when he joins his friend/brother-figure on a looting spree during a march. Suddenly he is standing there, stolen goods in his bag, gunshots ringing in the air and someone ending up dead.

This is a fast-paced YA-thriller that keeps you guessing. I listened to the audiobook and I enjoyed it. Some parts of the dialogue felt a bit unnatural but I don´t know if it was or if it is because english isn´t my first language. When it comes to the murder mystery I really didn´t know what the outcome would be which I liked.

The book fell a bit flat for me but I don´t think I´m the intended reader so I don´t want that to stop anyone from giving this a try!

I rated this book 2.5 stars.

This was an incredibly inspiring story of a young man’s journey in the city and his efforts to make a positive difference in his community.

Ａｕｄｉｏｂｏｏｋ & Ｅｂｏｏｋ Ｒｅｖｉｅｗ
🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟
Devoured this book! The topic is what young Black men, and honestly, people in general, are dealing with. This is my first book by this author, and it will not be my last. I'm keeping this review short and sweet. Highly recommend. Because, honestly, I could go on and on about how amazing this book is.

The audiobook is good; its dual narration and, honestly, the sound effects the male narrator added depth to the story and had me vibing with it more. I listened at 2x speed.

Pick this up if you love:
● high stakes, dual POV thrillers
● page-turning mysteries
● will-they-won't-they romance
● twists and turns you never see coming

Thank you, NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Macmillan Children's Publishing Group for the audiobook and ebook in exchange for my honest review.

As a 47 year old adult, I still love YA and even Middle Grade books. I eat them up! However sometimes there is a book that doesn’t completely click for me so then I put on my hat of how the intended audience will respond to it. That’s exactly what I am going to do in this review.

I found the writing was solid! It was fast paced, energetic and filled with age appropriate language and culture. I think teens will really enjoy this dual POV mystery. I particularly enjoyed that it was a male/female duel POV which helps give it wider appeal.

Many YA books appeal easily to a more mature audience but I think this one has its limitations, particularly due to the language choices. I consumed the audio ALC for this which I think I helped with some of the prose such as when sound effects happened, but over all I did struggle with it and expect I wouldn’t have preferred the eARC.

The two narrators, Aubrey Joseph; Megan Sousa did an ok job with the recitation. However, Ms Sousa in particular spoke incredibly slow and drawn out. If I wasn’t able to adjust the speed I don’t think I could have made it through the book. So I am going to suggest the ebook or physical copy over the audiobook

This book comes out on May 6th 2025. It would make a good addition to a school library.

I am thankful to have gotten a complimentary audio ALC from MacMillian Audio through NetGalley to read which gave me the opportunity to voluntarily leave a review.

My rating system since GoodReads doesn’t have partial stars

⭐️ Hated it
⭐️⭐️ Had a lot of trouble, prose issues, really not my cup of tea (potentially DNF’d or thought about it)
⭐️⭐️⭐️ Meh, it was an ok read but nothing special
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Really enjoyed it! Would recommend to others
⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ Outstanding! Will circle back and read again

🎧📖This was my first book by Nick Brooks.

Cooper and Jason go on a looting spree. Gunshots are heard and someone is murdered. Jason is arrested for the murder. Monique, Jason’s sister, is determined to prove her brother’s innocence. Cooper joins her and they uncover things they never bargained for.

I was pleasantly surprised by the twists and suspense. A gripping YA thriller with dual POV.

Thank you to NetGalley and Macmillian for the advanced audiobook and ebook.

My heart was pounding this entire time I was listening to this audiobook!

Cooper is pressured by his brother to go on a looting spree and someone ends up dead. A suspect is taken into custody.. and it’s not Cooper who is taken it, it’s Jason.

Monique is Jason’s sister and she wants to clear his name. And copper has a crush on Monique! She teams up with copper to investigate and along the way they start to fall for each other.

There were so many twists and turns throughout the story, some I didn’t even see coming!

I really enjoyed this audiobook and I’m looking forward to reading more of Nicks books.

Thank you NetGalley, Nick and Macmillan Audio for the ALC!

Publication : May 6 2025
Rating: ✨✨✨

#UpinSmoke #NetGalley

4.5 stars rounded up

I feel like this could turn into a YA mystery series! Set in Washington D.C., Up in Smoke follows a Black teen boy who has gotten in over his head when agreeing to help friends loot during a protest for money results in his friend Jason is arrested for murder. Cooper doesn't think Jason would have killed anyone, and Jason's sister (Coopers crush) agrees. Together they embark on a dangerous quest to clear Jason's name and uncover what really happened. But Cooper has secrets that could damage this burgeoning relationship...

The start of this is a bit heavy and feels realistic - it's tackling very real and complicated issues involving systemic injustice and how people respond to that. But it's also a great YA mystery with characters finding clues and uncovering the truth, even if they have to put themselves in danger to do it. (As a parent this sometimes stressed me out, but that's kind of the deal with this genre!) Nick Brooks is doing great work and I would love to see his mysteries take off. The audio narration for both character POV's is excellent. I received an audio review copy via NetGalley, all opinions are my own.